Archive for the 'Tom Dumont' Tag Under 'Soundcheck' Category

It was an evening of fun, celebration and even a few surprises Saturday at the 2014 OC Music Awards, once again held at City National Grove of Anaheim.

With no big winner emerging at the 13th annual ceremony, hosted for the fourth time by KROQ personality Stryker, trophies were presented to Kiev, Blok, the Dirty Heads, the Originalites and several other local favorites across 26 categories, including folk, punk, world, jazz, metal, blues, hip-hop, country/Americana, rock, pop and more.

The event also recognizes the county’s most influential players with its OC Impact and Lifetime Achievement awards. This year, punk mainstay the Offspring received the former honor after being saluted by No Doubt’s guitarist Tom Dumont and drummer Adrian Young.

“Orange County, you made our lives,” Offspring guitarist Kevin “Noodles” Wasserman said during his quick speech, noting that the band continues to live in the area, since O.C. “is the place to be.” Vocalist Dexter Holland offered comforting words to the dozens of up-and-coming artists in the room, sharing that his group, which also took home the competitive prize for best alternative, began after the guys couldn’t get into a local Social Distortion show – so they decided to start their own band at a backyard party.

But a media preview on Wednesday provided a chance to get an early look at the new music-related products on display through Sunday at the National Association of Music Merchants' annual trade show. NAMM President and CEO Joe Lamond said this year's gathering is expected to attract more than 100,000 people for the first time.

"The NAMM show is where the global music industry comes together," he explained during an appearance with Grammy-nominated guitarist and former New York Yankee great Bernie Williams to discuss the importance of music education. "There are products made today that will be played by our great-great-grandchildren."

Lamond also praised Orange County for welcoming NAMM attendees every January, noting that the music show was first staged here in 1976 at the Disneyland Hotel.

As is typical, there was no shortage of names to check out even during an advance stroll through the massive hall. Highlights of the day included a performance by Young the Giant singer Sameer Gadhia, who utilized his TC-Helicon VoiceLive 2 to create layers of vocal parts he improvised on the spot, creating a fantastic experimental soundscape with Radiohead shading that had video reporters riveted.

Gwen Stefani belts as Adrian Young pounds away on drums at the first of seven sold-out Gibson Amphitheatre shows from No Doubt this week and next. Photo: Kevin Winter, Getty Images. Click for more.

Stow your gripes about No Doubt's Push and Shove, the mega-platinum quartet's long-overdue return to recording after a decade of solo albums, side projects, making babies, cash-grab tours and general dormancy.

Yank the average lifelong fan off the streets of the band's native Anaheim and you'll likely hear the same complaints critics have made in even the kindest reviews. Half of them, I bet, will cop to flat-out ignoring it – notice that the album barely sold 100,000 copies in its first week of release, or one-sixth as many as the second disc from English upstart Mumford & Sons.

I've scarcely come across anyone willing to spin the new collection who hasn't nit-picked it to shreds.

“It's just another Gwen Stefani album” – that tops the list of disappointed groans. Savvier listeners toss out variations on “it's a bunch of Tony Kanal jams guest starring Gwen.” And those who still aren't on board with the danceable advances of 2001's Rock Steady, logically extended on Push and Shove, tend to resort to the usual trope: “I wish they'd get back to their roots.”

September 21st, 2012, 12:30 pm by BEN WENER, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Ramped up by middling August returns from Matchbox Twenty and Alanis Morissette and then ballyhooed titles from stalwarts like Bob Dylan, Dave Matthews Band and ZZ Top, the fall flood of new albums has officially breached the dam.

Already there has been a horde of smart ones from icons of the fringe: David Byrne & St. Vincent's sharp collaboration Love This Giant, Cat Power's downcast yet strangely happy Sun, dusky treats from Calexico and the Avett Brothers, bold steps forward from Animal Collective and Two Door Cinema Club, more sophistication from Pet Shop Boys and Stars, a spotty salute to Fleetwood Mac.

But this week and next are bringing some of the biggest titles of the bumper crop, including surefire chart-burners from the Killers and Pink, extras-heavy 25th anniversary editions of Michael Jackson's Bad and R.E.M.'s Document, a gems-stuffed sampler from Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music roster, more atmosphere from Grizzly Bear and Band of Horses, must-hears from Aimee Mann and Ryan Bingham, and the first album from Ben Folds Five since the millennium began.

We've got a lot of catching up to do. But we'll start with arguably the three most anticipated releases of the season, all arriving Tuesday, Sept. 25. First up is the return of the Little O.C. Band That Could. Look for our takes on Green Day's ¡Uno! (excellent) and Mumford & Sons' Babel (more of the same) later this weekend.

• No Doubt, Push and Shove (Interscope) – Expectations for this are both sky-high and completely irrelevant, which is what happens when the biggest Orange County band ever finally puts out more than just a Talk Talk cover after 11 years. Have they recaptured the magic? Will they sell like they used to? Does anyone still care?

January 22nd, 2012, 12:52 pm by GEORGE A. PAUL, FOR THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Although 90,000 people were anticipated over the entire course of the NAMM Show, it almost seemed like that many people converged on the Anaheim Convention Center all at once Saturday.

By 12:30 p.m., the main halls were swarming with attendees. I happened upon the Sennheiser USA booth's emerging artists stage, where Hot Topic/Alternative Press magazine fave Blameshift offered an appealing acoustic set. The Long Island-based rock band, led by Jenny Mann, played a few songs from last year's The Black Rose EP (like “Killing Me” and “Ghost”) as well as a mildly wailing take on Yellowcard's “Only One.”

At the far-end corner of Hall D, the PreSonus stage once again drew a big crowd, this time for a groovin' jam featuring guitarist Chris LeBlanc, bassist Jerry Henderson and David Haynes (known for his work with Stanley Jordan). The latter was especially interesting to watch play a small drum machine with his fingers.

Taylor Guitars has a reputation for showcasing top-notch artists at its spacious second-floor NAMM room and this week was no exception. Friday boasted an amazing set by San Diego's the Silent Comedy (read all about that here) while Saturday hosted Goo Goo Dolls frontman John Rzeznik.